Shelf attaching and supporting means



May 19, 1953 T.IM. DUNHAM I 2,639,043

ATTACHINGTANDV SUPPORTING mus 4 Find April 17, 1946 ;17.VE.Z 72 UP Patented May 19, 1953 SHELF ATTACHING AND SUPPORTING MEANS Thomas M. Dunham, Batavia, Ill., assignor to Aurora. Equipment Company, Aurora, 111., a. corporation of Illinois Application April 17, 1946, Serial No. 662,847

3 Claims.

This invention relates to shelf attaching and supporting means, and more particularly to means cooperating with the shelf and support therefor to fixedly position and support the shelf.

In accordance with the principles of my invention, I provide a shelf supporting member, which may be a case, cabinet, or the like, or merely end walls or corner uprights having horizontally aligned sets of openings therein at various levels, and attaching means for insertions in the registering opening portions. The openings in the shelf supporting members are in the general shape of a key-hole, in that they have an upper portion defined by arcuate shaped margins, and the margins of the lower portion of each opening are convergent downwardly to effect frictional engagement with the shank of the fastening means. The latter may comprise screw machine parts having circular heads joined by a cylindrical shank. One of the heads is sufficiently small to be insertable through the upper portion of the key-hole shaped opening but larger than the space between the converging margins, while the other head is sufficiently large to prevent its passage through a corresponding opening in the shelf.

An attaching means for securing two or more shelf supporting units, substantially as hereinbefore described and complete per se, in parallel spaced relation and interconnected successively, may comprise screw machine parts having circular heads joined by a generally cylindrical shank whose center portion is of like diameter to the smaller of the heads and sufficiently small to be insertable through the upper portions of key-hole shaped openings in the shelf supporting member but larger than the space between the converging margins defining the lower portions of the key-hole shaped openings. The shank of said attaching means tapers at each end to define identical generally cylindrical necks connecting the shank and circular heads. These necks effect a gripping frictional engagement with the downwardly converging margins of the key-hole shaped openings, and when these openings are in registration the attaching means will secure the shelved units in parallel spaced relation.

It is therefore an important object of this invention to provide a simple yet rugged shelf attaching and supporting means for fixedly but removably positioning a shelf in supported relation to a supporting member, such as the end walls of a cabinet, case, corner uprights or the like.

It is a further important object of this invention to provide shelf attaching and supporting means of novel and improved construction that enable a shelf to be changed from one position to another in relation to the shelf supporting member with a minimum of effort and a maximum of safety.

Another important object of this invention is to provide shelf attaching and supporting means thatenable complete shelved units to be firmly interconnected.

On the drawings! Figure 1 is a broken perspective view of a case, cabinet or the like; embodying shelf attaching and supporting means of my invention, with the openings onthe supporting members omitted;

Figure 2 is an enlarged side elevational view of an attaching and interconnecting means for holding one shelved unit to another adjacent unit; I

Figure 3 is an enlarged side elevational view of a shelf supporting and attaching means according to my invention;

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view showing the attaching means of Figure 2 connecting two shelf supporting units. such as two of the units shown in Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary sectional view of the shelf supporting member of Figure 3 shown in shelf supporting position;

Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary end elevational view, of a corner upright;

Figure '7 is a sectional view taken along the broken line VII-VII of Figure 6; and

Figure 8 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the line VIII-VIII of Figure 5 showing the shelf supporting member of Figure 3 inserted into the key-hole shaped slot and. dotted in cammed position.

As shown on the drawings:

The reference numeral l0 indicates generally a shelved unit, such as may be used for a storage bin for metal parts. Said shelved unit comprises four corner upright support standards ll, l2, I3 and I4, positioned by pairs, in parallel planes. Since all the support members are identical, except for being right or left hand, only one of them need be described. The upright member 12, for instance, is of suitably heavy metal bent rightangularly to define a narrow flange [5 provided with apertures 36 (as by punching) onequally spaced centers providing for attachment thereto by nut, bolt or rivet, of support braces such as the support brace l6. Said standard [2 is rigidly secured, by bolt or rivet, at the upper end to a downturned flange I I of a top cover I8 and rigidly secured in similar fashion to a downturned flange I9 of a lower shelf 20. The broad face of the standard I2 is apertured, as at 36a, adjacent the outer portion, that is, the edge away from the right angular bend, onequally spaced centers, which outer portion is slightly recessed inwardly, as at 40. Apertures 36a serve for attaching sway braces, similar to support braces Ifia (Figure I), or end panels, as by means of nuts, and bolts, or rivets, to more securely position the corner upright standards I I and I2, and I3 and I4 in parallel planes.

Said support standard I2 is provided with keyhole shaped openings 2|, the upper portion of which is generally circular and the lower portion defined by opposed, downwardly converging marginal edges 22 and 23.

A plurality of shelves, similar to the identical shelves and 24 and 'top cover l8, may be mounted between the support standards I I, I2, I3 and I4. Said shelves may all be identical in size and shape so that only one need be described. The shelf 24, for instance, is provided with downwardly turned flanges I9a. The lower edge of each flange, such as the flange [311, may be turned back upon itself, or rolled, to. provide a. strengthening and rigidifying member 38. Each of the shelf flanges, such as the shelf flange IEia, is provided adjacent its ends with an opening 39 that may suitably be of the same diameter as the upper circular portion of the key-hole shaped opening 2 I A fastening member, indicated as a whole by reference numeral (Figure 3), is used for fastening the shelf 24 in place. Said fastening member 25 comprises a stud having a head 25 that is smaller in diameter than the circular opening 39 and the corresponding circular upper portion 21 of the key-hole shaped opening 2 I, but larger in diameter than the distance between the spaced marginal edges 22 and 23, and a second head 28 that is larger than said circular opening 39. An intermediate shank 29 connects to the head 28 at one end and has an upwardly tapering portion 4| connecting the head 26 at the opposite end, is cylindrical in shape and of a diameter greater than the minimum, distance between the spaced marginal edges 22 and 23 but less than the maximum distance between said spaced marginal edges.

In fastening a shelf 24 in place, the shelf is ad-- justed to a height at which the circular opening 39 will register with the circular upper portion of the key-hole shaped opening 2 I, and the head 26 of a fastening member 25 is then inserted through the registering openings. 'The shelf is then moved downwardly to effect frictional gripping engagement between the shank portion 29 of the fastening member 25 and the converging marginal edges 22 and23. Said marginal edges 22 and 23 thus effect a camming action with the shank 29 (shown in dotted lines in Figure 8), and as the weight to be supported is placed on the shelf, the frictional engagement becomes tighter and more rigidly fastened to the shelf supporting member.

The fastening member 25 may suitably be a screw machine part, formed of steel. The heads 26 and 28 are separated by a distance approximately equal to the combined thickness of the wall of the upright member I2 and the wall of the downturned flange formed on the shelf 24. A portion of the thickness of the shelf supporting member rests on the tapered end H of the shank 29 effecting a wedging action bringing the shelf 24 and the shelf supporting member I2 into tighter association, thereby adding to the rigidity of the shelved unit I0.

In order to remove a shelf, or to change its position, it is merely necessary to give each of the attaching means 25 a light tap in an upward direction with a hammer or other object to free the shank 29 of attaching means 25 from its cammed engagement with the converging margins 22 and 23. The shelf is then raised to a point where the head 26 of the attaching means 25 may be removed through the registering opening from the inside, leaving, the shelf unattached to the shelf supporting member III and ready to be moved into an adjusted position or to be removed entirely.

Shelved units, as the unit I 0 illustrated in Figure 1, may be securely interconnected by a fastening member, indicated as a whole by reference numeral 30. (Figure 2). Said fastening member 30 comprises a stud having a head 3i identical to previously described fastening member head 26, and a second head 32 identical with the head 23 of fastening member 25. A cylindrical shank 33 of a. like diameter to the head 3| tapers downward at each end 42 and 43 to define identical necks 34 and 35 connecting the said shank to the respective heads 3I and 32. Said necks 34 and 35 are cylindrical in shape and of a diameter greater than the minimum distance between spaced marginal edges 22 and 23 but less than the maximum distance between said spaced marginal edges.

In fastening shelved units, the units are brought into spaced relation and positioned so that corresponding key-hole shaped openings, similar to the key-hole openings 2I in the support standards I2 and 37, which are identical with support standards II, I3 and I4, will oppose each other. The head 3| is then inserted through the registering openings so that the necks 34 and 35 are located immediately above the maximum distance between the spaced marginal edges 22 and 23. Fastening member 39 is then moved downwardly to effect frictional gripping engagement between the necks 34 and 35 of the fastening member 30 and the converging margins of the corresponding key-hole shaped openings, effecting a camming action. A portion of the thickness of each of the support standards I2 and 31 rests on the tapered ends 42 and 43 of the attaching member shank 33 effecting a wedging action that assists in rigidly inter-securing the shelved units I8. Said fastening member 30 may be a screw machine part, formed of mild steel.

As two corresponding support standards of the shelved units to be interconnected will oppose each other in spaced relation, a minimum of two of said fastening members 33 must be used, and it is desirable to employ six so that the shelved units are then rigidly attached together and are separated by the distance represented by the length of the shank 33 of the fastening member 30. Thus by utilizing fastening members 30 and repeating the attaching procedure, an indefinite number of shelved units may be successively fixedly fastened together forming a bank of parallel shelving for use as desired.

It is thus apparent that I have provided sim ple yet rugged shelf attaching and supporting means, the use of which greatly facilitates the setting up of shelves in cases, cabinets or between corner rack uprights or the like. The provision of such attaching means in combination with the construction of the shelf supporting means that has been described herein makes it a simple matter to vary the spacing of adjacent shelves to accommodate the particular objects to be stored. Also, apparent, is the simple yet efiective attaching means, the use of which greatly expedites a practical rigid interattachment of complete shelved units in parallel to allow a wider range of utility when employed as storage space.

It will, of course, be understood that various details of construction may be varied through a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention, and it is, therefore, not the purpose to limit the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In combination, shelving units each having shelf supporting members provided with aligned sets of spaced key-hole shaped openings capable of inter-registration, each opening having an arcuate upper portion and a lower portion defined by converging margins, a generally cylindrical attaching means comprising spaced circular heads of diiferent sizes, the smaller of said heads being of a diameter greater than the maximum distance between converging margins of said openings and of lesser diameter than the arcuate portion, the larger of said heads having a larger diameter than said openings, said heads being connected by a generally cylindrical shank tapering downward at each end to define identical necks of greater diameter than the minimum distance between converging margins of said openings and of less diameter than the maximum distance between said converging margins, said attaching means being capable of insertion into said registered openings in said supporting members to fixedly position said shelving units by frictional engagement as said necks cam downward between said converging margins of said openings.

2. In combination, shelving units each having shelf-supporting members provided with aligned sets of spaced key-hole shaped openings having converging margins and capable of inter-registration, and attaching means insertable into registered openings in said shelf-supporting members to fixedly position said shelving units in spaced relation by friction camming engagement with said converging margins of said keyhole shaped openings, each of said attaching means having spaced heads of unequal size and an intermediate shank portion having spaced frusto-conical oppositely directed tapered portions adjacent said heads, respectively, for frictional camming engagement with the margins of said openings, said attaching means including reduced diameter necks between the tapered portions and the heads.

3. In combination, shelving units each having shelf-supporting members provided with keyhole shaped openings, each opening having an arcuate upper portion and a lower portion defined by converging margins, and attaching means comprising circular heads of unequal size and an intermediate shank connecting said heads, said shank tapering downwardly and outwardly at each end to define oppositely directed frusto-conical tapered portions and including reduced diameter necks between the tapered portions and the heads, said shank being capable of insertion into registered key-hole shaped openings in said shelf-supporting members with said frusto-conical tapered portions in tightly fitting camming engagement with said converging margins to fixedly position said shelving units in spaced relation.

THOMAS M. DUNHAM.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,213,304 Vance Jan. 23, 1917 1,288,010 Isaac Dec. 17, 1918 1,434,220 Morris Oct. 31, 1922 1,778,982 Pannier Got. 21', 1930 1,871,972 Fenstermaker Aug. 16, 1932 1,966,928 Friedel July 17, 1934 1,971,726 Norwood Aug. 28, 1934 1,996,518 Levene et al. Apr. 2, 1935 2,000,451 Krieger May 7, 1935 2,246,457 Schultz June 17, 1941 2,604,213 Bales et al. July 22, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 377,770 Great Britain Aug. 4, 1932 

